Fred, Tampa is a Mafia town, as are Clearwater and St. Pete. Both political parties on both sides of the Bay are run by Italian Directors (DNC, RNC). Lots of NY mafiosi here. The NY Yankees do Spring Training here. So you will encounter many Mafia Wise Guys. All three of my landlords here have been nightmares. One of them, Jim M., vandalized my car twice, stood outside my door to listen to my phone calls (the owner-mgr. of the Hyde Park Hotel, Jim McCready - his name is public info), and Jim stole my keys when I accidentally left them in the door lock. I had to call the cops on his Maint. man because he threatened me with a hacksaw while I was checking my mailbox. I had never met him before. The landlord set me up by describing me to him, falsely alleging that I had accused him of vandalizing my car. The cops told me he was OK, even tho he had a wrestling match with one of the three cops who responded, and even tho he had a long rap sheet. Mafia cops. I lived there nine months. About two years total in Tampa Bay: Tampa, Clearwater, and St. Pete. Italian culture: think NY and Italy. Rome, Italy has the highest purse snatching rate in Europe. One would think that if Italians are running the show here, you would at least get good food. Wrong. Not like the other side of the Gulf (NOLA, Houston). The food is as bad as that in Phoenix, AZ. Yes, there is Bern's Steakhouse, the Columbian Restaurant for paella, and some tiki bars on the beaches. But too many redneck cooks whose parents are related. Pizza. Hungry Howie's gave me a veg pizza that was all yellow: all pepperoncinis. Another veg pizza: no mozzarella cheese (grated parmesan), and no green pepper. Welcome to Redneck Land! And this was near USF. What do those students study? All of the many other pizzas I've had have been bad. Southerners are cheapskates - they short you on the toppings. And I've seen mafiosi instructing owners how to cheat on their health inspections. Kinda like New England. Mafiachussets. Chinese food. Horrible! One must travel 100 miles south to Venice, FL to get good Chinese (downtown - the Island). Rednecks here are rude and stupid, as elsewhere. They block aisles in the store, and they are horrible drivers, as are Blacks and Dagos. Be prepared to get run off the road, squeezed out, tailgated, and honked at. One yuppie idiot stopped on a combo on-ramp-off-ramp on I-275 because he couldn't race to the front of the line, and cut in line. I had to stop and wait behind him. When I passed him, I flipped him the Italian Salute. He immediately changed his course to follow me off the off-ramp, and yelled and screamed at me at the first light. Not sure of his language. Italian? Lots of electrical power fluctuations and outages here, not nec. related to storms. So get a UPS for your computer. Save your e-mail every few minutes. If you're a single male, the women here suck, not in the nice way. Mostly rednecks. Snowbirds bring their own. I've never been stopped by a cop in two years here. Good! Unlike AZ and CA. Good talk radio. WFLA, WGUL, WWBA. Tampa Bay Times is supposed to be good. The old St. Pete Times. TV news is good. No Oldies stations on FM radio, unless you're up north near Spring Hill (106.3). Scott Shannon on The True Oldies Channel! Ballet: I know Luisa Mischikoff. She's on TV. Check her out. I met her in NYC and here. It is hotter and more humid here than JAX. JAX has improved its curb appeal from I-95. Tampa has not. The main roads (including Interstates and US 19) are always under construction. Italian contracts. Tampa General is supposed to be the best hospital in FL. Moffett Cancer Clinic is #22 in the US. Both run by USF Med School. UF-Gainesville has a big dental clinic in Seminole, FL. You know about UF's ER in JAX. UF Med School. The good thing about Mafiosi is that they keep the Black Mafia at bay. Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton aren't gonna stir up much trouble here. To wit: NYC and Boston. I learned my lesson about the Black Mafia in Raleigh, NC. I spent 2 years in court, plus another year, for donating two items to Goodwill Industries. False charge of assault because she didn't feel like doing any work when I arrived. She was doing community service per her drug conviction. Goodwill sent an Impersonator to court, who committed perjury, and they fabricated a fake video of "the crime scene," submitted to the Court. NC plantation culture. Kangaroo Court. Black Judge: Keith O. Gregory (again, public info), who denied me counsel and notice of a trial. Hello, Al Sharpton! I had five attorneys, four of whom were ordered by the ADA not to represent me, or do any investigation into the Unknown Complainant, who was impersonated, and fabricated evidence. They are well-organized. The Unknown Complainant remains unknown. Goodwill has stonewalled me. Do not donate to Goodwill. They have no parent org that oversees the many franchisees.
Shawn | Saint Petersburg, FL | Report Abuse